WRDSB to lay off 106 elementary school teachers
CTV
More than 100 teachers at the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) are learning they have been declared surplus will likely be out of a job as of Aug. 12.
More than 100 teachers at the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) are learning they have been declared surplus will likely be out of a job as of Aug. 12.
In an email to CTV News, the board confirmed it made the decision to lay off elementary teachers who do not have permanent status after receiving initial budget information for the 2024-2025 school year from the province. The decision impacts around 106 teachers, the board said.
The union representing the teachers says it expects many of them will be recalled once the board receives further grant information from the province.
It laid blame for the decision squarely at the feet of the Doug Ford government.
"This decision profoundly underscores the challenges educators and our public education system face due to inadequate funding. It is the first time since the Mike Harris regime that ETFO Waterloo has been in a surplus position,” Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario Waterloo Region President Jeff Pelich said in an email to members shared with CTV News.
“The Minister of Education likes to tout that funding for education (including childcare) increased by 2.7 per cent. With an inflation rate of 3.7 per cent and an enrolment increase of one per cent, this is a cut to public education. It is our collective responsibility to hold the Ford government accountable for this.”
More to come.
